Use of mobile phones and cameras

Safeguarding and Welfare Requirement: Child Protection

The Safeguarding policy and procedures at St. Mark’s Pre-school include an explanation of the action to be taken in the event of an allegation being made against a member of staff, and cover the use of mobile phones and cameras at the Pre-school.

 

1.6 Use of mobile phones and cameras

 

POLCIY STATEMENT

 

We take steps to ensure that there are effective procedures in place to protect children, young people, and vulnerable adults from the unacceptable use of mobile phones and cameras in the pre-school.

 

PROCEDURES

 

Personal mobile phones

  • Personal mobile phones belonging to members of staff are not used on the premises during working hours.
  • At the beginning of each individuals shift, personal mobile phones and apple watches are stored in the office.
  • In the event of an emergency, personal mobile phones may be used, with the permission of the leader.
  • Members of staff ensure that the telephone number of pre-school is known to immediate family and other people who need to contact them in an emergency.
  • If members of staff take their own mobile phones on outings, for use in the case of an emergency, they must not make or receive personal calls as this will distract them.
  • Members of staff will not use their mobile phones for taking photographs of children on outings unless with permission from leader or deputy and making sure that all images are uploaded to our social media page and immediately deleted with a witness from both recent photo’s and recently deleted files.
  • Parents and visitors are requested not to use their mobile phones whilst on the premises. There is an exception if a visitor’s company or organisation operates a lone working policy that requires contact with their office periodically throughout the day.  Visitors will be advised of a quiet space where they can use their mobile phone, where there are not children present.
  • A preschool mobile phone will be taken on outings and used to call a parent/carer in the unlikely event of an emergency.

 

Cameras and videos

  • Members of staff must not bring their own cameras or video recorders into pre-school.
  • Photographs and recordings of children are only taken for valid reasons, i.e. to record their learning and development, or for displays within the setting.
  • Camera and video use is monitored by the pre-school leader.
  • Where parents photograph or record their own children at special events, photo’s/video’s should not be used on social media and these will be asked to be removed unless they are just of their own child/children.
  • Photographs and recordings of children CAN ONLY BE TAKEN by members of staff once the appropriate consent form has been signed and dated by the parents or person with parental responsibility. The form is part of the child’s registration form and should be checked by the leader or assistant leader when the child starts pre-school.
  • It is the responsibility of the child’s key person to inform all practitioners IF a specific requirement has been stipulated regarding the use of photographs on their registration form.
  • Photographs should only be taken when there are two or more staff present.  Care must be taken by all staff to ensure that no child is in a photograph if this has been stipulated.
  • Photographs will be printed in preschool using our printer.
  • If photographs are to be used for any other reason than those stated on the registration form, the details will be updated as appropriate, and parents/carers will be asked to sign a new form.
  • Photographs of children are regularly uploaded to the preschool private social media page which parents give consent in the registration pack. Parents are able to request to join this page and will be deleted once their child is no longer in attendance.
  • Photographs are also uploaded to ‘Tapestry’ on the child’s secure online learning journey. This is password protected and only accessed by staff at preschool or by the parent’s own password protected account.
  • The public Facebook group will not contain any children’s faces. Back of heads and/or provision only.

 

This policy and the provisions practices will be reviewed periodically and kept up-to-date in accordance with any changes in legislation.

This policy was adopted at a meeting of St. Mark’s Little Birds Pre-school committee on: 21.01.2014

Updated and Agreed: 17/05/2016

Updated and Agreed: 10/11/2017

Reviewed and agreed: 27/04/2018

Reviewed and agreed: 26/02/2019

Reviewed and agreed: 24/03/2021